Using technology in schools

On the left side of my graphic organizer, Content, there are qualities needed in any F2F class, but they are also important in a distance learning section. Adding technological tools that learners are using in their non-school learning makes sense (Soloway, 2009). They already own cell phones, iPods, and MP3Players, and in some schools, these devices are seen as a danger (Macleod, 2009). Cell phones can be used for calendars, homework reminders, and connecting to teachers and classmates regarding class work, in addition to connecting to the Internet and adding pictures to writing assignments (Prensky, 2005). Email, blogs, and wikis can and should be used for information and discussions; they can also be used for collaboration and assignment submission. Many of these same features are part of iPods and MP3 Player capabilities. It behooves teachers to create assignments at suggest to students that they could choose these tools—if the teacher and the school allow them, the students will find ways to use them.

Soloway, C. N. (2009, January 14). Get Cell Phones into Schools. BusinessWeek: Technology. Retrieved from http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/jan2009/ tc20090114_741903.htm
Macleod, F. (2009, October 31). 'Treat mobiles in schools like offensive weapons' - Scotsman.com News. from http://news.scotsman.com/education/39Treat-mobiles-in-schools-.5783435.jp
Prensky, M. (2005). What can you learn from a cell phone? Almost anything! Innovate Journal of Online Education 1(5). Retrieved from http://www.innovateonline.info/

Storyboard for 8842

I think that I got the chart into GoogleDocs for my video. Find it at http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=ddng8qg6_3cfzgcqcq

Cynthia

I think that both the individual and the group work are important, but I lean toward allowing students who are unwilling or unable to work as a group to have some alternatives. The goal of any class is what goes on with the student singular. In work, such as designing a bridge or organizing a business, the individual is not as important as the final product. So, while students need to learn to play well with others in order to do well in a job situation, their individual ability to think critically, understand deeply, critique others honestly and fairly, and evaluate the critiques of others without being rude or over emotional are all needed for our final product to be able to compete in a global economy.

There are in my mind issues with group formation. Last quarter in Walden I was assigned group members within the first two weeks of two classes. One of those groups I found rewarding and valuable to my learning process. The other group was total frustration. I spent so much time and emotional energy on that group that I was not able to complete KAM as I had wanted to do.

So back to assessment of groups, I applaud peer, learner-centered, and self assessment of the functioning of the group and instructor assessment of the work product using a rubric. I base these ideas on using collaborative learning in F2F classes during my teaching experiences. I used Daniel’s Literature Circles, Reciprocal Teaching, and Socratic Seminars as tools to help my students own their own reading and interpretation of text. I monitored and used rubrics to assess the learning of my students, and I was pleased with the results.

I am trying to post a table that I created in Word--I did not want to take the time to learn a new program to create the storyboard. I see now that I am not able to post this table as it looks in my version. Any thoughts on how to post it?


time text Images, videos
20s Introduction to Digital Teaching and Learning and Dr Christine Greenhow. Thank you for being here today at the Digital Teaching and Learning Conference to hear our keynote speaker Dr. Christine Greenhow, speaking on some of the major themes and issues surrounding DTL.

Picture of Dr. Greenhow
20s But before I introduce her, let’s work on defining digital teaching and learning. Clocks are now digital when they were once analog. We are currently moving from analog to digital television.
Video of Daddy’s clock and digital clock

Video of analogy tv→and digital tv.

20s And our taxes can be sent digitally with a digital signature. Pictures are now taken with digital cameras that have memory sticks instead of film. Video of someone signing taxes, then of the taxes sent online.

Image of film camera; video of digital camera
20s Publishing is changing. In the olden days, books and textbooks were the primary form of information transmission. Today, the Internet is the primary form information with more than 62% of people in the US connected to the Internet at home (Greenhow, et al., 2009a, p. 246).
20s People are even self-publishing, both in textual from and digitally. Every time we print something, we are publishing. Video of printer.
45s Then there are the Digital Divide,

the digital natives,

and the digital revolution. Video of Seabrook oldies, video of a group under 25

Video of preschoolers with computer

Stills of digital revolution
15 One outcome of this digitalization is the ever increasing use of social networking sites.
20s So how are we moving form “analog” classrooms to digital ones?

How are paper trails being converted to representations that are never in print?

When are we going to have roll books and diplomas that are in fact student portfolios saved to thumb drives?

How are we going to use social networking as an educational tool?
15s Defining digital teaching and learning
60s Best Practices in the digital classroom
30s Dr. Greenhow’s vita
30s Video clips of Greenhow’s presentations and tv interviews.
15s Credits and closing

Global Diversity and DE

Global diversity has been evolving since prehistoric times. As one culture encountered another, very often one was obliterated, either through conquest or assimilation. During the later half of the 20th century, after a war based on prejudice and racial hatred, perhaps some of us as a world have begun to see global diversity and tolerance as a benefit to society as a whole. This is an ongoing human development, and the desire for global diversity is not universal. New prejudices and racial hatred may be in the wind as terrorism, both international and domestic, strikes at the hearts of even the most stanch egalitarians from time to time.

Tolerance is fostered by knowledge of other cultures. Without tolerance, global diversity is dream not a reality. As Stephen Raymond, in this blog at http://sraymond-pofde.blogspot.com/ mentioned, “The world has gotten smaller, and I for one think it’s a good thing.” I for two think it is a good thing, too. As we are able to bring our friends and families closer and learn new ideas from those we may have considered less-than-friends, our global village will only thrive and strive for higher achievements.

Education and curriculum developers at all levels of education must be the vanguard of the movement for global diversity. This means that U.S. schools, especially the post-secondary ones, need to examine how they engage international students as well as how they invite U.S. students to become knowledgeable of other cultures. I agree with Karen Wondergem’s blog at http://wondergemprinciplesofdistanceed.blogspot.com/ that the curriculum design at universities must open up. I would go as far as to extend that to the K-12 curricula.